Although it’s well-known that heart disease is a major killer of women, doctors in one study tended in high proportions to blame the women’s symptoms of that ailment on stress, according to this blog by Dr. Bonnie Weiner.

Writing for the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions Web site Seconds Count, Weiner noted a study of 230 family physicians and internists.

When given the same classic heart disease symptoms of fictional patients in which stress was mentioned as a factor, the docs diagnosed most women’s problems as psychological.

“… A heart disease diagnosis was given only 15 percent of the time” (emphasis added) for women, Weiner said. “Meanwhile, when the man stated stress was present in his life, he was diagnosed with heart disease 56 percent of the time, suggesting that physicians did not interpret his stress as the reason behind his cardiovascular symptoms.”

Weiner’s advice for women?

Trust your instincts, ask lots of questions, give your doctor all the information, and if the situation still doesn’t feel right, get a second opinion.